The Federal Government has announced the cancellation of the Bilateral Education Agreement (BEA) Scholarship Programme, describing it as a waste of resources since Nigerian universities already offer the same courses that students were being sponsored to study abroad.

The BEA Programme, established through strong diplomatic ties and mutual cooperation, enabled Nigerian students to study in partner countries such as China, Russia, Algeria, Hungary, Morocco, Egypt, and Serbia.

The Minister of Education, Maruf Tunji Alausa, announced the government’s decision to discontinue the programme during a meeting with leadership of the National Association of Nigerian Students in Abuja. He expressed displeasure over what he described as the blackmailing behavior of some scholars under the scheme on social media.

Alausa said the government would redirect the funds toward domestic scholarship programmes that would benefit more students across the country. Alausa criticized the lack of academic monitoring, noting that the government covers free annual travel for scholars without tracking their performance.

The Director of University Education, Rikaya Gambo-Iliasu, urged the students to always make use of dialogue in achieving their aims rather than being confrontation. Earlier, the newly elected President of NANS, Olushola Oladoja, commended the minister for the significant progress made since his assumption of office.